Navy CTO: Innovation Adoption Kit Breaks the ‘Valley of Death’

The Department of the Navy’s Innovation Adoption Kit (IAK) is designed to speed how the service develops and acquires new technologies, moving beyond traditional, lengthy development processes. DON CTO Justin Fanelli said the framework prioritizes tech solutions that demonstrate measurable, outcome-driven results during GovCIO Media & Research’s Defense IT Summit Thursday in Arlington, Virginia.

“The future is now,” Fanelli said, explaining that the kit is designed to strengthen collaboration between industry and the service. That coordination helps speed projects and avoid the “valley of death” that often stalls promising capabilities before they reach operational use.

He described the kit as “institutionalized common sense,” creating a standardized template for vendors to follow and a clearer pathway for transitioning solutions from pilot to production.

A key component is portfolio management — identifying high-performing efforts and advancing them through the pipeline. Since the kit’s launch in October, Fanelli said the department has seen strong early results, with additional progress expected this spring and summer.

This is “a huge example of how the Secretary of the Navy has unleashed the hard chargers to deliver faster together,” he said, adding that the IAK accelerates game-changing bets on new technologies.

Structured Piloting

Structured pilot programs are a core element of the kit. The approach enables coordination across portfolios, reduces redundancies and emphasizes measurable return on investment.

“This can be the time where, like never before, we can pull the best of industry forward faster,” he said.

In the first four months of the 2026 fiscal year, the Navy conducted 15 pilot projects. Several have transitioned into key programs. Additionally, Fanelli noted that at this time in 2025, the War Department had no designated enterprise services. There are now seven in service with four more in the queue. If there is a good business case, the new process will designate them, he said.

Measuring Impact

Fanelli said one challenge with legacy programs was measuring the true impact of pilot projects. The service now uses a playbook built around World Class Alignment Metrics (WAM) to assess outcomes more rigorously.

WAM differs from previous procurement efforts by incorporating private-sector-style performance measures. Rather than focusing primarily on readiness — which can be difficult to quantify — the framework evaluates return on investment, revenue and overall value.

Where it once took decades to field new systems, Fanelli said the department can now move projects to completion in months or years. As part of that shift, the Navy is embracing calculated disruption. If a new system can replace multiple legacy tools, the service is prepared to make that call, he said.

“We don’t want to be patient anymore,” Fanelli said.

While industry has been highly responsive, the Navy also launched a boot camp for program officers to ensure the service can effectively engage with contractors and incorporate feedback. The effort equips Navy personnel with tools to better evaluate and adopt emerging technologies.